Introducing Finn- Post Scene to Mountebank
by Mulderette
Summary: Callen can't keep from worrying about Finn. *Contains spoilers for Mountebank*


Callen marched Finn down the stairs of the boatshed and ushered him towards the exit. "I'll see you back at the boat later, Sam," he called out, ignoring his partner's questioning look. He then brought Finn out to his car and the two got into the vehicle. Callen waited for the younger man to fasten his seatbelt and then started to drive. They sat in silence and Callen realized if he wanted Finn to say anything else, he was going to have to initiate it. "So, Finn…are you hungry?" he asked.

Finn shrugged and then gave Callen a sidelong look. "I could eat," he finally mumbled.

"What do you feel like? Burgers? Pizza?"

"Whatever," Finn said with another shrug.

"Sushi?" Callen asked.

"No, I don't want sushi," Finn said, making a face. "Look, why don't you just drop me off back at my apartment?"

"Because I haven't eaten since breakfast and I'm hungry," Callen said. "I was just trying to figure out what you really wanted."

Finn rolled his eyes. "Well, it really isn't necessary. Anyhow, can't you get your own dinner? I don't think you need me along for the ride."

"I thought it was a nice gesture on my part," Callen said.

"I can get dinner on my own." Finn was looking increasingly uncomfortable.

"Not with Dexter's credit cards, I hope."

"I have other ways," Finn said, defensively crossing his arms over his chest. "Anyhow, you confiscated the credit cards, didn't you, unless you're planning to give them back to me?"

Callen ignored Finn's remark about the credit cards. "So, do you have a job?" he asked.

"I get by," Finn replied.

"How?" Callen asked uneasily. "Stealing is only going to get you into trouble. Trust me, that's not a path you want to take."

"I didn't say anything about stealing," Finn answered quickly. "I have my ways. Seriously man…why don't you just bring me back home or drop me off wherever. I don't need you. I can get home on my own."

Callen dropped the conversation and drove to a local restaurant, O'Shea's, that served casual food, pizza, chicken wings and sandwiches. "Come on," he said as he pulled his car into a parking space. "I know you're hungry." He went to open his car door, but Finn didn't budge. "What's the problem?" Callen asked.

"I don't like owing people," Finn said, staring down at the floor.

"There are no strings, Finn," Callen said. "Come on…you're not going to owe me anything, okay?"

Finn glanced at Callen and finally nodded as he got out of the car and followed Callen into the restaurant.

xxxxx

Callen and Finn sat in silence after they placed their orders. Finn kept his attention on his tall glass of icy Coke while Callen tried to think of a nonthreatening topic of conversation. "So…did you graduate from high school?" he finally asked.

Finn narrowed his eyes at Callen from across the table. "Yes, I graduated in June," he replied. "I'm not stupid."

"I didn't say you were stupid. In fact, I think the exact opposite." Callen bit back the many other responses that came into his head at what Finn had said, realizing that criticizing Finn's life choices wouldn't get him anywhere. "So, I guess you're probably good with computers," he commented casually.

"What? Why would you think that?" Finn asked. "Anyhow…I don't even have a computer…"

"I was just kind of wondering about Dexter Hughes…how did you get his information?"

Finn took a long sip of his Coke and remained silent.

"Are you a hacker?"

"How would I even know about that kind of stuff anyway?" Finn asked, not answering the question Callen had asked.

"I'm assuming you probably took some computer classes at school…libraries have computers…maybe you have friends who have them…"

Finn shook his head and pushed his chair away from the table and stood up. "You said we were getting something to eat, not that I was being subjected to an interrogation," he said. "Why didn't we just stay at that boathouse place if that was your intent?"

"Finn no, stop," Callen said. "Listen…you're right. I'm sorry. I was just curious, but I won't ask you any more about it…okay?"

"You promise?" Finn asked, still looking like he was ready to bolt out of the restaurant at any second.

Callen nodded. "I do. I promise. Come on, sit down. The food should be here any minute," he said persuasively. Finn hesitated again but he finally did as Callen had requested and sat back down in his chair.

Callen breathed a sigh of relief when Finn returned to his seat and realized he needed to back off for now. One thing he knew for sure was that Finn was a sharp kid and he was going to keep track of him. At that moment, the food came and the two dug into the sandwiches, French fries and onion rings they had ordered. As Callen watched Finn eat, he couldn't help but wonder how he was going to get by on his own now that he didn't have Dexter Hughes as his safety net. Even smart kids needed a helping hand sometimes. He hoped he didn't connect with the wrong kinds of people, unless he already had. Hopefully that wasn't the case. He wasn't going to push him though. When they had finished eating, they went back to the car and Callen drove Finn back to his apartment. "Thanks for dinner," Finn said when Callen pulled up in front of his building.

"You're welcome," Callen said. "So…remember what I told you…if you need any help…"

Finn nodded. "I know…I have your card. I'll call."

Callen wasn't sure if he believed Finn or not, but there wasn't much he could do about it right now except keep tabs on him from afar, perhaps with a little help from the Wonder Twins, as well.

"Okay…you take it easy," Callen said.

"Yeah, uh, you too," Finn replied as he got out of the car and closed the door firmly behind him, then headed inside without looking back.

xxxxx

After Callen dropped off Finn, he began driving in the direction of the marina where Sam's boat was berthed. It didn't happen all the time, but he had taken to staying there periodically, sometimes as much as three or four nights a week. He wasn't really sure what Sam thought about it. For all he knew, his partner was irritated by his presence, but it made him feel better to know that Sam wasn't always alone. In any case, it wasn't like Sam had said anything to dissuade him and had provided extra bedding and pillows for Callen so he was pretty sure he didn't mind.

When he got to the boat, he saw that Sam's car wasn't there. His first thought was that Sam had wanted to go out to dinner with him and he hadn't been there for him. He pulled out his phone and was about to call his partner when he saw a text from Sam letting him know that he had gone with Kensi and Deeks to grab something to eat. He felt better when he read that.

Callen went aboard the boat and stood at the side of the deck where he gazed out at the ocean. He still couldn't get Finn out of his mind, or the fact that he had been at one of the same shelters that Callen had spent time in as a boy. Callen hadn't even been old enough to be there on his own at the time. However, a fake ID and shelter workers who either didn't pay attention or who had felt sorry for him, had enabled him to spend time at the shelter "between placements." Memories he had tried to keep buried had been surfacing for most of the day. In particular, he couldn't stop thinking about the stupid hole in the bathroom wall. It had been late, after curfew, and he had been asleep on one of the choice beds at the shelter, which for him was a rarity. He'd been abruptly awoken when a hand was tightly placed over his mouth and a harsh voice had whispered to keep quiet or he'd be sorry. He had tried to escape the two sets of arms holding him and had received hard punches to his ribs and face for his trouble. "Get the hell out of here, kid," one of the men had snarled while the other one had laughed and kicked him before settling down on the bed. "Now!"

Defiant, Callen had stood up and tried to pull the man from the bed. "I was here first!" he had shouted. Other men in the room had yelled for him to shut up. The companion to the man in the bed had shoved Callen against the wall. "If you know what's good for you, you'll get out of here now, kid. Didn't anyone ever tell you to respect your elders?" He hadn't stood a chance against two men who were much taller and bulkier than he was, and he had known that others would back them if the need had arisen. He hadn't had any illusions that anyone would come to his defense. Angry and humiliated, he had gone into the bathroom where he had locked the door and then proceeded to punch the hole in the bathroom wall. All he had gotten for his trouble was a badly bruised hand which had taken a good amount of time to heal.

"G?"

Callen had been so caught up in his thoughts that Sam's voice and subsequent pat on his shoulder startled him slightly. "Hey Sam…"

"Are you all right?" Sam asked, his eyes concerned as he studied his partner who seemed a little bit off to him.

Callen nodded and quickly composed himself. "Yeah, yeah, I'm good…so, where did you guys end up going?"

"We just went to La Paloma's for Mexican food."

"That's good," Callen said, but Sam could easily see that G was distracted.

"So that kid who was at the boatshed…he was Dexter Hughes?" Sam asked.

"How did you know that?" Callen asked before he thought about it and answered his own question. "Kensi and Deeks."

"They mentioned it," Sam said with a nod. "Anyhow, what did you do with him?"

"We grabbed something to eat and I brought him back home," Callen said.

"Really?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, really," Callen said.

"Huh…interesting…"

Callen turned his attention back to the water, not really wanting to debate the issue with Sam.

"I guess I'm a little surprised you didn't dig further into the matter, G…what did you find out?"

"He didn't have anything to do with the case."

"You sure about that?"

"Yes…" Callen turned back to face his partner. "Anyhow…he'll be staying at the apartment in Santa Monica. I'm going to keep tabs on him…"

"You are?"

"Yes, I am. Why?"

"Nothing, G…I just find the whole thing interesting. It doesn't sound like you really even interrogated this kid and now you're letting him stay in the apartment. I'm just wondering why."

"I told you I was going to keep tabs on him."

Sam nodded. "Yes, you did. Because you suspect him of something else?"

Callen remained silent, mentally willing Sam to just drop the subject.

"G?"

"I just…I don't know, Sam…it's just something about him. I'd like to help him, if I can…"

Sam considered his partner's words and demeanor before speaking further. In the past, it was always people with similar pasts to G who caused a reaction in his partner. "Foster kid?" he asked softly, meeting Callen's gaze.

Callen shrugged. "I don't even know," he admitted. "He stayed at a shelter I'd spent time with…not a great place…I just…I thought I'd give him a break and yeah, I know he broke the law," he said quickly before Sam could say it, "but…I don't know…like I said, something about him…"

"Well, if you say there's something about him, that's all I need," Sam said.

"Thanks," Callen said with a trace of a smile on his lips. "The only thing is, he's all set with the apartment for a year, but…"

"But what?" Sam asked.

Callen shook his head slowly. "I have no idea what this kid does for money, Sam… I'm afraid he's going to get into trouble. He needs to eat and…I've been there. Sometimes when I took off from a bad placement, I had to steal to eat. I wouldn't want to see him getting mixed up with a gang or something just to feed himself.

Sam considered Callen's words and nodded thoughtfully. "You know, G…I've been thinking about hiring someone part-time to help on the boat."

Callen glanced at his partner before smiling. "No you haven't ," he said. "This boat is your baby. I know you want to do the work yourself."

Sam nodded. "You're right, and I thought I could, but there's actually a lot more work than I thought there would be. There are some things that another person could do that would make things a little bit easier. Especially since my partner seems a little more invested in **_supervising_** and less so in getting his hands dirty."

"You know I'd help you if you really needed the help, Sam…" Callen said, looking a little bit embarrassed. "I just thought you'd prefer to do it without me butting into it. You don't need to hire Finn though. I'll help you."

"You can help me on weekends," Sam said, "or on the nights we actually get home at a decent hour from work, but it would be nice to have someone take care of some tasks during the day. There are certain things I could have him do that would be a big help. It would probably be good for him too, sea air, manual labor, nothing quite like it. It gives a person a feeling of accomplishment. "

Callen nodded thoughtfully as he considered Sam's words. It would at least give Finn a bit of money so he could eat and figure out what he wanted to do next. That was, if he hadn't figured it out already. Callen had no idea what his plans could be. "If you're sure…I guess I could run it by him…" Hopefully, he wouldn't scare Finn off. He was hesitant to be too pushy, knowing it could just send Finn running off in the opposite direction.

"I'm sure, G." Sam smiled at his partner. "And now I'm also sure that this weekend, I'm going to be putting my partner to work for a change."

Callen nodded, returning Sam's smile. "No problem, big guy, you just tell me what to do and I'll get it done for you. Maybe we can stop by Finn's place tomorrow…I'll introduce you and we can run this idea by him and see what he thinks.

"Sounds good, buddy," Sam said as he threw his arm around Callen's shoulders, "but for now, I think a couple of beers and some relaxation are in our future."

"That sounds good, too," Callen said with a smirk as he followed Sam down into the main cabin of the boat.


End file.
